He says: “Any transport users who need to travel are going to need reassurance about what services are running and open and what they might expect on those journeys.

“Most of us are non-users now, out of the habit of travelling in a new, fearful environment. Information is always important in allaying anxiety.”

Image copyrightReutersImage caption A post-lockdown London will face new challenges – and be presented with new opportunities

So what does all this mean for the transport authorities?

In 2019-20, 47% of TfL’s income came from transport fares, at £4.9bn. Those revenues have been decimated but the system is still costing £600m a month to operate in the capital.

TfL previously had no grant support from government but it is now in talks over a bailout – although if there were to be one, it would almost certainly come with strings attached.

Insiders have told me part of any deal is that all future infrastructure projects would have to be reassessed, including Crossrail 2 and the Piccadilly line upgrade.

Many projects would face being delayed or scrapped.

Tfl has no choice other than to ask for government funding, and this could cause it to lose some of the independence it currently has under the mayor.

Prof Tony Travers, an expert in local and national government at the London School of Economics, says: “Given the politics of the national government and City Hall, it’s almost certain the government will want a say in the use of any money that they hand over to Sadiq Khan.

“They could want more control of TfL, like the Tube and buses, or other conditions like access to TfL land.

“That would be a mistake. TfL has its problems but it is demonstrably better run than the national railway.”

As passengers start to return to the capital after lockdown, getting around will be much more difficult and time-consuming than it has been over the past six weeks.

The new reality will be bewildering and mind-boggling for many. London and its transport system will not be the same in the near future.

As TfL says: “It is clear life simply won’t be returning to what it was before.”